Stolen medical data from 500,000 UK volunteers advertised for sale on a Chinese website


Health information belonging to 500,000 people in the United Kingdom has been stolen and offered for sale on the Chinese website Alibaba, the UK’s technology minister Ian Murray has confirmed.

The medical data comes from participants of UK Biobank, the world’s most comprehensive dataset of biological, health, and lifestyle information, compiled from volunteers and used by scientists across the world for research. Murray said that on Monday, 20 April, the organisation informed the government that they had identified its data being advertised for sale by several sellers on Alibaba’s e-commerce platforms in China.

Read more…
Source: Yahoo News


Sign up for the Cyber Security Review Newsletter
The latest cyber security news and insights delivered right to your inbox


Related:

  • UK manufacturers under cyber fire with 80% reporting attacks

    April 1, 2026

    Nearly 80 percent of British manufacturers say they’ve been hit by a cyber incident in the past year, as new research suggests disruption on the factory floor is no longer an exception but business as usual. According to security outfit ESET, 78 percent of UK manufacturers admit to suffering at least one cyber incident in the ...

  • Halifax and Lloyds customers hit by online data breach

    March 12, 2026

    Lloyds, Halifax and Bank of Scotland customers were given access to strangers’ banking transactions in a major online data breach this morning. Customers were able to view charges and payments on their banking apps that were not linked to their own transactions following the suspected technical glitch. Wage payments, HMRC reference numbers and other personal transactions were ...

  • UK: Welsh firms ill-prepared to meet the challenges of cyber security threats

    February 9, 2026

    Many businesses in Wales lack the readiness to meet cyber security threats while also underestimating their potential costs, shows new research. Undertaken by Bridgend-based managed services provider CSG, the research focused on firms across construction, manufacturing, professional services, retail, public services and tourism. It reveals that two-thirds of (66%) have already experienced a cyber security incident. Typically, ...

  • Paris prosecutor’s cybercrime unit searches X office

    February 3, 2026

    French police raided the offices of Elon Musk’s social media network X on Tuesday and prosecutors ordered the tech billionaire to face questions in April in a widening investigation, amid growing scrutiny of the platform by authorities across Europe. France’s raid and the summoning of Musk — which could further increase tensions between Europe and the ...

  • Northern Ireland: PSNI officers affected by data breach to receive £7,500

    February 3, 2026

    Almost 10,000 police officers and staff affected by a huge data breach in Northern Ireland are to get a payment of at least £7,500 each. The details of all the PSNI’s serving officers and civilian staff were inadvertently published as part of a response to a Freedom of Information (FOI) request in August 2023. The database ...

  • UK: New home for Army’s cyber regiment

    January 16, 2026

    The Army is spending £279 million to build a new base for the soldiers who protect our military from cyber attacks. The money will pay for new buildings at Duke of Gloucester Barracks in Gloucestershire. This is where 13 Signal Regiment will be based. They are the soldiers who defend the Army’s computer systems from ...